I just wanted to wish you all a Happy Easter. Lets hope the weather improves for us allotmenteers today. Hubby has planted half of our spuds the earlies and the first earlies as traditionally potato planting is on Good Friday. He’s hoping to get the other four trays in today, the second earlies and the maincrops, I have an awful lot of pricking out of vegetables to do.

The reason for the very early post its 12.44 a.m. at the moment is just to say that I managed to keep to my promise for Lent and did not cast on anything new. I found it quite an interesting experience. On the one hand it was nice to get ahead on some projects and to finish a couple of projects which then gave me the pleasure of wearing and using them. On the other hand I have been very grumpy in the last few days. The reason, I haven’t had a plain sock to knit. You see when I am feeling grumpy and my level of pain is creeping upwards at the moment, knitting a vanilla sock is very relaxing to me, its almost like taking a soothing painkiller. (not quite but almost) And not having this to hand has just made me even grumpier.

Did I find anything out about myself apart from that I missed sock knitting during lent? I did actually, I found out that my projects always take longer than I think they will to complete. That I do need variety because this eases my muscles as they can get very stiff and painful within a short time doing the same activity but also within this that I can spend too much money. – shocking I know!!! If, I looked hard at my stash of both materials and yarn, I have enough projects to keep me going for a good while yet and I think that is something that I am going to continue to address this year and most probably next year. (although I am going to find books very difficult to give up, and to be honest I don’t think that is ever going to happen) Just as an enabler, have you seen the William Morris In Applique – 6 stunning projects and over 40 individual designs, (Amazon have it in at two prices at the moment, I have no idea why – my book has the same cover as the more expensive version, but the ISBN of the cheaper version, hows that for a puzzle) Its a gorgeous book, absolutely stunning, I bought mine at The Bramble Patch, which is a lovely place to shop, hubby took me out on an afternoon excursion, I spent three hours looking at their Easter exhibition, books, materials and notions, I could have spent longer and I now have all the wear with all to make a beautiful cushion and I’m looking forward to starting that next week. Seriously if you are lucky enough to find this book in your hands you will understand why I have fallen hook, line and sinker for it.

Another lesson was, that when Really Good News is announced, its Very Difficult not to cast on. (you know who you are!!!)

So the plan for today, after a sleep, is two fold, one is to cast on a sock with whatever comes to hand from a lucky dip stash dive, and to knit for a few minutes and the second part of the plan is hubby is carting me up to the plot to sit in the sunshine (I can dream) dressed in several layers of clothing, so that I can prick out the vegetables I’ve been growing whilst he is planting spuds and peas. You never know I might even do a little light hoeing, should the mood take me.